On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons-Chapter 243: #Starting an Otherworldly God Life as an Ant (3)

It was a sight to behold. Even when I was human, a hundred thousand imperial ants were terrifying. Now, as an ant myself, they were nothing short of a catastrophe.

“Iron-blood! Iron-blood! Iron-blood!”

“In the name of the great and vicious emperor!”

The hundred-thousand-strong army roared, causing a thunderous rumble to echo through the forest.

“Wow. That's something,” I murmured as I watched from my carriage.

“A-are you sure you'll be fine on your own?”

“I-i-it's too dangerous!”

A black ant with a slightly larger head than his comrades and the white termite—Il-Ho and Anty—trembled in fear.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Didn’t I tell you guys to hide?”

The rest of the Gayami Tribe had gone to seek refuge in a cave a distance away. However, a few warrior ants remained despite my dissuasion, expressing their will to fight alongside me.

“N-no! I’m still a great warrior of our tribe! I’ll protect my people no matter how weak I am!”

“M-me too! Even though I'm but a humble being, I will stay with you! I believe in you, Lord Yu Il-Shin!”

“W-we’ll be with you too, Lord Yu Il-Shin!”

I was touched. My children were already cute and admirable even before evolution.

“Alright. All of you are nice kids.”

I gently patted Il-Ho, Anty, and a few other warrior ants on their heads, then turned my attention back to the advancing imperial army.

I could spot No. 403 and their leader on the front lines.

“Are you sure that lunatic on the carriage is the same bizarre god you saw?”

No. 404 shivered, looking up at the ant before him. “Y-yes, General Stoogi!”

Wow, he's huge.

Although No. 404 was larger than the other red ants, compared to General Stoogi, it was like David facing Goliath. Moreover, General Stoogi’s mace was nearly the size of an ant’s house.

“No matter how I look at it, he just looks like a madman...”

“Don’t be fooled by his appearance! That monster massacred our entire search party with a staff!” fгeewebnovёl.com

“Keke. You call him a monster just because he wiped out some weaklings? Hm?”

Something in General Stoogi’s ridiculing gaze shifted. He sniffed the air around Anty, who shivered beside me.

"Ooh! That jade-like carapace and honey-sweet scent! You must be the black tribe’s most prized possession—a once-in-a-century Saintess! Ahahaha! Who would've thought I'd find you so easily? Are you offering the Saintess in exchange for your life?"

His eyes brimmed with greed and desire. “Keke, my mouth waters at the sight of her.”

“Ahem. General Stoogi, please don’t forget that the Saintess is an offering for the emperor,” said the scrawny ant beside him with concern.

“Hmph! I know, so stop nagging, Deputy General Hibiscus!” General Stoogi grumbled. He then commanded his soldiers, “Surround them! Don’t let anyone escape!”

“Yes sir!”

Ruuuuumble!

The soldiers moved in perfect unison, surrounding us in an instant. Compared to them, we were akin to a few drops of black ink falling amid a vast red river.

“Aaaah!”

“W-what do we do, Lord Yu Il-Shin?!”

My pale-faced children stuck right by me.

Uhm, how cute of you, but could you give me some space?

I cleared my throat, then yelled at the imperial soldiers, “Listen, Imperial Army!”

My thunderous voice tore the hundred-thousand-strong army apart.

“Gaaah!!”

“Hyiii!!”

The imperial ants covered their ears in unison, screaming back at the sound that tore their eardrums. The technique was called Lion—no, Ant Roar, a fusion of internal energy and divine power that Demon Lord had taught me.

“Huh? What's wrong with them?”

The imperial ants' reactions naturally confused the black ants. After all, the latter were within my protective barrier’s range.

“I’m God Yu Il-Shin, the god of the Gayami Tribe—those you call the black tribe! I do not wish to kill the innocents. Retreat if you wish to live!”

The imperial ants screamed in agony once more.

“Uuggh!”

“Aaargh!”

I meant every word I said. Even though they’d massacred the Gayami Tribe in my previous life, they were still Ant Emperor’s soldiers. I didn’t want to kill them if I could help it.

General Stoogi slammed his mace on the ground as he ragefully yelled, “You! What evil sorcery did you use?!” Baaam!

The impact made the imperial ants freeze.

General Stoogi was fuming, his nostrils flaring up as he brandished his mace at me. “Such lowly tricks won’t work on a general of the Iron-blood Empire! You lunatic! Face me in single combat! What? Too scared?!”

“Huh?” I was speechless.

Wait, if I could take him down, wouldn’t the rest of the imperial ants flee in fear?

I raised my front leg and gestured at General Stoogi. “Challenge accepted. Come at me.”

“Koff! You madman! How dare you disrespect...!”

“G-General Stoogi! You shouldn't act rashly! He’s a monstrous god! We haven’t fully grasped his identity and powers!”

“Hmph! I was once a candidate for His Majesty’s Ten Swords! One swing of the mace that His Majesty has bestowed upon me will smash that madman like dried jerky!”

Paying no heed to his deputy, General Stoogi strode over to me.

Thud thud thud!

The black ants slowly turned pale at the sight of the approaching general. He looked even bigger up close—his shadow alone engulfed all of us.

A special number appeared above the general’s head.

[No. 818]

Huh, wait a minute... where had I seen that number before?

Gazing at the trembling Anty, he salivated. “Keke, Little Bitch, you look much more delicious up close.”

General Stoogi then briefly glanced back at his troop, murmuring in dismay, “Keke. I could just kill this lunatic and eat one of her legs. No one would notice.”

Anty shivered, tears welling in her eyes. “Hic, L-Lord Yu Il-Shin...”

Oh, I recall now! No. 818 was the ant that tried to rape Anty and devour her in my previous life!

Ding!

[Yu Il-Shin is enraged at No. 818!]

“Huh! T-there’s a sound coming from my head!” He covered his ears, flustered. “Y-you! What kind of witchcraft are you trying to cast on me?! I’ll crush you before you can finish it!”

Terror in his eyes, he swung his mace with enough force to crush a hundred ordinary ants.

Boooom!

“Eeeeek! Lord Yu Il-Shin!”

Anty shut her eyes tight and threw herself toward me, trying to protect me. By all standards, it was a suicide attempt.

Bam!

A horrific sound rang through the air.

“Huuuuh?!” General Stoogi stared at his mace in horror and disbelief. “I-impossible...!”

“Lord Yu Il-Shin?”

Fear filled Anty’s eyes as she saw my front legs swelling like balloons, pushing the mace.

I had used Strong Body, Il-Ho’s skill. Though I couldn't use Skill Sharing, I had internalized his ability through countless uses in my past life and recreated it with my internal energy and divine power.

Il-Ho’s eyes widened in shock. “S-such amazing muscles!”

Riiiip!

The mace cracked and shattered into pieces.

“Fucking bastard! How dare you harm Anty!”

Craaaack!

In response to my rage, General Stoogi began to crumble. “Eeek! S-save me! Aaaargh!”

Craaaack! Baaam!

As if crushed by a finger, General Stoogi was reduced into a bloody mess, squashed into the ground.

The horrifying sight left the Gayami Tribe and the imperial army speechless.

Ding!

[You have successfully replicated the innate power Crushing Forefinger of God, originally possessed by Earth’s Yu Il-Shin.]

[You can now use the Crushing Forefinger of God once again.]

Huh?

I was bewildered over the recovered power. Meanwhile, after witnessing General Stoogi’s pathetic death, the deputy general commanded his army, “All soldiers, charge! Kill that evil god and avenge the general!”

As seasoned soldiers, they quickly recovered their composure and charged toward us with vengeance. Such a relentless assault it was—an embodiment of army ants!

Ruuuumble!

“Aaah! Slay the evil god!”

“Avenge the general!”

I pulled out the branch tied to my waist with my mouth. With another Ant Roar, I swung Demon Lord in a circular motion.

-Imperial soldiers! If you want to live, halt! Demon Lord’s Second Stance, Demon Lord’s Pratāpana!

My sword technique recreated infernal flames that blazed before the charging imperial army.

Kwaaaa!

A wall of hellfire, at least dozens of centimeters high, rose like a protective shield. The imperial soldiers stopped at the sight.

“Oh my god!”

“This... isn’t something a mere evil god can do...”

My magnificence had broken their morale.

I unleashed Ant Roar once again. “Imperial soldiers! Reducing all of you to ashes is an easy feat for me! However, I’ll show you pitiful creatures mercy and spare your lives!”

“Ah, God Yu Il-Shin is so cool!”

“Haa haa! Incredible muscles!”

“Amazing flames! It’s a miracle!”

Anty and the other black ants swooned over me.

I got so caught up in the atmosphere that I solemnly shouted, “Retreat and tell your emperor that I, God Yu Il-Shin, will be heading to your empire soon!”

“Huh?! That evil god is His Majesty’s friend?”

“N-no way! B-but if he has this level of divine power, maybe...”

The soldiers' exclamations satisfied me.

This should be enough to resolve the situation, right?

Though I had killed General Stoogi in a fit of rage, the emperor probably wouldn’t get too angry if I returned the rest of his soldiers safely. He was a tyrant, anyway. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill his own subordinates, so one less probably wouldn’t make a difference.

If I were to meet him personally and convince him, he’d definitely join my side! After all, in my previous life, we were friends who understood each other!

However, I overlooked something crucial.

“Waaah! The hellish flames are spreading!”

“R-Run! Your soul will be reaped if that evil god burns you to death!”

“Aaaargh! Your Majesty! Please save me!”

As the saying went, “Be careful of fire, regardless of whether one was awake or asleep.”

Crackle!

The wall of fire that I had created was quickly spreading to the forest.

Uhm, this isn’t how it’s supposed to be...

Ding ding! Swoosh!

[No.819 has been burned to death.]

[No.820 has been burned to death.]

...

[No.2,125 has been burned to death.]

Messages from God-Maker rang out incessantly, and heaps of Godcoins scattered around me.

[Yu Il-Shin has achieved 1,000 Karma!]

[Congratulations. You have obtained the Malevolent God title Brutal Killer(F)!]

[You have successfully replicated the innate power Convicting Middle Finger of God, originally possessed by Earth’s Yu Il-Shin.]

[You can now use the Convicting Middle Finger of God again.]

“F-fuck!”

Shit is going down!